Contents

History

Doctor Fate was far older than he appeared. He defeated the demon Karkull a century before the age of Superman. When Karkull returned, Fate realized that no matter how hard he tried, evil would never give up, and he abandoned the fight. When Superman came to his friend to ask for his help, Fate refused, stating that he had become weary of the never ending battle. Superman went off to fight the demon and was given a magic charm by Inza, while lamenting that while she was willing to help, her powers would be no match against the demon. Superman then went to the Daily Planet building which had been taken over by the demon. Superman fought the creature and was not strong enough to stop him. However, Superman's refusal to give up inspired Fate, showing that while evil would never surrender, neither would great heroes. The two heroes, successfully defeated the demon. Fate however, was injured during the battle. Consequently, Superman rushed Fate back to his home and his wife's care. As the wizard recovered, he reaffirmed his commitment to fighting evil.

Years later, Fate became aware of Icthultu's and the Old Ones' attempts to re-enter the realm of humans. He went to Aquaman, whose ancestor King Poseidon had defeated the Old Ones and banished Icthultu a millennium ago using the Trident. Fate attempted to perform a ritual that would seal Icthultu out, using the Trident and Solomon Grundy, whom Fate agreed to help reclaim his soul. However, the Justice League intervened, believing it to be unjust torture to Grundy. After Fate finally explained his actions, Hawkgirl suggested they just kill Icthultu instead. Though riskier than the ritual, Fate accepted it as a better solution. Grundy became an unlikely hero by damaging Icthultu's internal structure, causing its death at the cost of his own life.

Justice League

After the Thanagarian invasion, Fate accepted an invitation to join the expanded Justice League. What Fate didn't inform the League about was that he and his wife Inza had given shelter to Shayera Hol, who was exiled from Thanagar and disgraced from the League over her role in the invasion. He allowed Shayera to stay there for months until she was ready, though he did keep her mace in a pocket dimension to prevent it from interfering with the magic energy within his home.

When Amazo returned to Earth, Fate argued that they should give him a chance, for he had proved benign before. Learning that the Android only wanted to find a purpose, he stopped the Green Lantern Corps long enough for Lex Luthor to talk to Amazo, then offered to help him find his purpose in life.

A group of college students accidentally resurrected Solomon Grundy with Chaos Magic. After informing J'onn J'onzz of what happened, he took Shayera, Aquaman, and Amazo to try to stop Grundy. Unfortunately, even Fate's magic, Amazo's technology, and the powers of Superman and John Stewart were unable to stop him. Worse, Fate discovered that there was nothing in Grundy's mind but rage. Out of options, Shayera was sadly forced to kill Grundy with her mace, which also led her to rejoin the Justice League.

When Flash's mind was accidentally switched with Lex Luthor's, Fate managed to concoct a spell to reverse the process and return the two to their proper bodies.

Powers and abilities

Doctor Fate was granted most of his magical powers by the Helmet of Fate, though he was also a renowned occultist. Doctor Fate had the ability to fly, teleport, pass through solid objects and had a wide knowledge of magic and extra-dimensional entities. His magical abilities included firing potent energy blasts, creating mystical shields, bringing gargoyles to life, and longevity. His magic was nullified by Nth metal, as Hawkgirl defeated him with her mace.